Sherlock's First Easter Experience
by GoodShipSherlollipop
Summary: Sherlock and Molly attend the Good Friday service at their church. He is surpriseded when Molly does something unexpected.
1. Chapter 1

**Thanks Victorianlady79 for beta'ing.**

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Molly looked over at her husband, who was buttoning his suit jacket over his navy blue shirt. As usual, he looked gorgeous, she thought. She herself was dressed in a new black maternity dress with a wrap-over top and long sleeves. She had on her maternity tights and black slip on shoes. There would be no more heels until after the baby came. Besides, her poor feet were constantly swollen now, and even the slip on shoes hurt after awhile. As soon as they got to church, she would take them off in the pew.

"So, tell me what happens during a Good Friday service," asked Sherlock. "All these years I've never thought about what it meant. Why is it called Good Friday anyway, when it is the worst day on the Christian calendar?"

"It was the worst day for Jesus for sure, because it's the day we recognize as when Jesus gave his life for us. It was the best day for humanity though, for the same reason. The moment Jesus bore our sin on the cross and died is the moment we were redeemed by his blood. His one perfect sacrifice was made to save the world. Unfortunately, most people reject it and want to go their own way."

"Well, the idea of relinquishing control of your life can be a hard concept to grasp," observed the sleuth.

"I don't think it's so much giving up control as it is allowing God's leading in your life, living in a way that pleases Him." She kissed his cheek.

The detective smiled at her. "I'm trying, but I know I have a long way to go."

"You do please God, Sherlock. Even before you believed in Him, you did a lot of good for people. You just needed to realize why you had such a strong sense of right and wrong."

"I do feel my life has a purpose now in a way I didn't understand before," he agreed.

"I know it does, and that includes you being here for me." This time, she stood on tiptoes to kiss her husband. "Now, let's go, or we'll be late for church."

Half an hour later, the couple was in the church sanctuary. The church was not as brightly lit as it had been on Christmas Eve and there was an air of solemnity.

A large wooden cross stood on a stand next to the pulpit. It was lit from below by a single spotlight. At the other side of the pulpit was a branch of candles. A white one was in the center, with three other white ones to either side, in a descending pattern.

Molly made a quick stop at the sound desk, handing a cd to the person who was sitting there, then she and Sherlock walked to their usual pew, acknowledging various church friends along the way. There were only hushed whispers of conversation before the service began. Sherlock gave Molly a curious look. She had not told him why she was seeing the sound technician. "I'll tell you later," she whispered, knowing no explanation would be needed soon.

As the service began, a child acolyte went to the front and lit the Christ candle from the branch of candles. For the past 6 weeks, as Lent progressed, the other candles were left unlit one by one in the countdown to Good Friday.

Molly kicked off her shoes and breathed a quiet sign of relief. Sherlock squeezed her hand in sympathy. Undoubtedly he would give her a nice foot rub once they got home. He was very aware of her discomfort, and always ready to ease it in any way he could.

The service progressed. There would be some reading from one of the Gospels with one of the phrases Jesus had said on the cross, then a short observation about those words, followed by a hymn or worship song. "The Old Rugged Cross" was sung, as was a lovely modern worship song called "Lead Me to the Cross."

Molly started to feel nervous by the time the sixth reading was made. Sherlock looked at her curiously as she slipped her shoes back on.

As soon as the reading and explanation were concluded, the pathologist stood and made her way to the front of the church. She took a handheld microphone from where it lay on the piano and waited for the music to come through the system. It had been quite awhile since she had sung a solo in church, and it was the first time Sherlock had heard her in this way since their wedding day almost eight months earlier, when she had sung at their reception as a surprise for him. Singing wasn't the easiest thing to do when you were heavily pregnant and the baby was pressing on your diaphragm, but she had been practicing while Sherlock was out on a case. She had wanted this to be a surprise for her husband.

Then as the music to "Via Dolorosa" began, Molly lost herself to the beautiful music and just thought about the lyrics as she sang -

"Down the Via Dolorosa, in Jerusalem that day,

The soldiers tried to clear the narrow street,

But the crowd pressed in to see the man condemned to die on Calvary."

She continued with the song, which also had a verse in Spanish. Molly was pleased with how well the song went. As the song ended, she saw Sherlock's big smile and he raised his hands as if to applaud. She hastily shook her head slightly and he put his hands back down.

When she re-entered the pew though, Sherlock took her hand and raised it to his lips in a gallant fashion, murmuring, "Beautiful, Molly." She could see how proud he was of her and smiled back at him.

The last reading was done, Luke 23:46. "Jesus called out with a loud voice, 'Father, into Your hands I commit my spirit.' When he had said this, he breathed his last."

Molly blinked back tears. Every time she heard that, it made her emotional, knowing what the Saviour had done, the sacrifice he had made to save the world; it was astounding. To die for your friends is one thing, but to die for your enemies as well? Who but Jesus would have done that?

As the reading concluded, the reader snuffed out the final Christ candle and everyone left the service in silence, as the organ played the deep sounds of a tolling bell 33 times, to represent the 33 short years of Jesus' life on earth.

Once outside, the detective whispered, "That was an amazing service. I had not really understood until now the depth of Jesus' love for us, and the sacrifice he made."

The pathologist nodded soberly. "Don't forget the suffering he endured too, the beatings and lashes from the whip. He was tortured beyond what anyone could imagine."

"What I endured in Serbia was nothing compared to that," commented the detective, in more of a normal tone, as they reached the kerb and he flagged down a taxi.

They got into the taxi and continued their conversation.

"I'm always reminded of what happened in the garden," remarked Molly. "Jesus showed his humanity there more than at any time, when he was anguished on the Mount of Olives. He feared death just like any other man, but he said to God, 'Not my will, but Yours be done.'"

"I'm starting to understand that more," noted the sleuth. "By the way, that song you did, it was so moving, and so lovely. You moved my heart with it, my love."

"Thanks, sweetheart, that means a lot to me. It's hard for me to get up and sing, but I did feel the presence of the Holy Spirit when I was singing."

"My wife, the pathologist and the singer. You are a woman of many talents," chuckled her husband.

"You're one to talk. You're a consulting detective who plays violin, plus you sing really beautifully as well. We still need to do a duet sometime."

"I think that might have to wait for awhile," pointed out her husband, gently rubbing his hand across her belly. "I think Victoria is going to keep us very busy for awhile when she arrives."

The taxi arrived at Baker Street, and the two of them went inside.

"So," Molly asked, once they were back inside the flat and seated comfortably on the sofa, "what did you think of your very first Good Friday service overall?" She had kicked off her shoes and had her feet now resting on the coffee table.

"I thought it was very eye-opening. I see things in a way now that I would not have a year ago."

"That's because you are now seeing with the eyes of faith. Remember the verse in Amazing Grace we sing sometimes at church? It says, 'I once was lost, but now am found; was blind, but now I see.' Unless we open our hearts to the Holy Spirit we can't see anything beyond ourselves."

Sherlock kissed his wife sweetly. "It was your faith first that drew me into wanting to learn more about it. I hope you know how much I thank God for you, my love." He placed his arm around her shoulders and she leaned her head into him.

"I thank God for you too, Sherlock. Now I'm really looking forward to you experiencing church on Sunday when we celebrate the resurrection."

"Are you singing on Sunday as well?" asked her husband.

"As a matter of fact, I am," she smiled up at him.

"I can't wait," responded Sherlock, resting his cheek against her head, and the pathologist smiled contentedly. Sunday would be yet another first for them to experience together as a couple - the most important day in the Christian calendar, the celebration of Jesus coming back from the dead, His resurrection.

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 **Author's note:** Well, I am pretty sure nobody has ever written a Sherlolly story where Sherlock experiences Good Friday and Easter through the eyes of faith.

If you are not familiar with my writing, I apologize if you find the pregnancy talk confusing. This story, as well as my other works, relates to the same Sherlock and Molly from "A Journey to Love, Faith and Marriage."

I hope you find this story moving enough to leave me feedback. I love hearing from my readers and I always respond to each person who takes the time to leave their feedback. Your feedback is a blessing to me. I hope I may also be a blessing to you.

Additional note - If you are curious about the song "Via Dolorosa," check out the Sandi Patti version on YouTube. If it sounds like I know what I'm talking about when Molly sings it, that is because I do. I will be singing it at my own church (as I have done before on several occasions) for the Good Friday service.


	2. Easter Sunday

**Thanks Victorianlady79 for beta'ing.**

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Sherlock watched as his wife made her final preparations for church on Easter Sunday morning. She was putting on the earrings he had given her as a wedding present that he had bought the day he purchased her engagement ring. As usual, she was also wearing the cross necklace he had given her for Christmas. He thought she looked utterly beautiful in her purple maternity dress. Their baby was due one month from today, and the closer the time got until the blessed event, the more excited and nervous he got at the prospect of being a father for the first time at the ripe old age of forty-one. He hoped he would be able to keep up with his child.

"Didn't you want to be there a bit early to hand your disc to the person on the sound board?" the sleuth asked. He had been so proud after she sang that lovely song on Good Friday, and Molly had surprised him further by saying she was also doing a solo on Easter Sunday.

"I know, I know. It was so hard to get out of bed this morning. Every day I get more tired and more uncomfortable."

"Let me help you get your shoes on, at least." He reached for Molly's flat shoes and put them in front of her so she could slip them on. They did not look comfortable he observed. The shoes were not made for swollen feet and he could see they would leave a line along the top of her feet when they were taken off. "I wish you had more comfortable shoes," he said with some concern.

"It's fine. The midwife assured us the edema will most likely go away as soon as the baby comes. I can stand it for another month. I'm ready now."

Sherlock took his wife's arm and picked up her handbag and phone for her. They left the flat and took a taxi to church.

As they rode, Molly rested her head contentedly on Sherlock's shoulder, while he thought about the upcoming service.

This Easter service would be the first he had ever attended, to his knowledge anyway. Even if he had gone to an Easter service in the past, it would have meant nothing when he had been an atheist. His conversion to Christianity had changed his life completely.

Things had begun to change after Sherrinford, when he had finally realized he loved Molly. Her sweetness and gentle faith had made him want to learn more about her beliefs. Many things had occurred that drew him towards God and ultimately, Sherlock had given his life over to the Lord and had not looked back since.

Now, with the benefit of hindsight he could see God's influence in his life through the years, even when he thought the world revolved around him. Despite his arrogance, he had had an innate sense of justice, of the difference between right and wrong. He genuinely wanted to help people, to do good, and he supposed deep down God had been there leading him on the path to what was right. God had definitely been the one who had protected him, when he had been close to death on so many occasions. Chalking everything up to coincidence was more ridiculous than believing there was something or someone greater at work.

Sherlock kissed his wife's hair fondly. She was such a blessing to him, as was their soon-to-be-arriving daughter. The detective had never known such contentment in his life as he had found since turning to faith and marrying the woman who had always mattered the most to him. He was blessed, and he knew it.

When they arrived at church and headed inside, Sherlock could see the sanctuary, unlike Friday evening was brightly lit. The cross that was beside the pulpit now had white lilies (not real of course) stapled across its length. The items that had been "decorating" the cross were no longer there - the nails, the spear, the crown of thorns, the whip, the purple robe, and the sign that said "King of the Jews." Today they would be celebrating a risen Lord.

Molly handed her disc to the sound person and the pair made their way to their usual pew. Sherlock noticed many by now familiar faces in the crowd of people, as well as many visitors.

Sherlock really enjoyed the first hymn. "Christ the Lord is Risen Today." Not only the hymn, but also the tuneful hallelujahs That were sung during it. Molly sang with gusto, her lovely voice easily reaching the high notes, and Sherlock realized this was obviously a common Easter hymn.

The centre candle that had been extinguished at the end of the Good Friday service to denote Christ's death was now burning brightly, along with the three candles on either side, symbolizing the resurrection of Jesus.

The story of the resurrection was read and another hymn was sung. This one Sherlock had heard before at Church, "In Christ Alone." The key for this song was much easier for Sherlock's baritone voice, and he was able to sing along with it. He noticed Molly glancing at him and smiling. He knew she really enjoyed hearing him sing, almost as much as he enjoyed her singing.

The sermon by Pastor Briggs was very good as usual. He talked about how the resurrection of Jesus saved a world that was doomed. He explained that of all the religions, Christianity was the only one that talked about a risen Lord.

"We were slaves to sin, but we are now freed from the bondage of sin and death through Jesus's perfect sacrifice for humanity once and for all when he died on the cross. His resurrection ensures that we, as believers, will continue to live past this earthly life as well. What a glorious hope we have, to know one day we will leave all earthly sorrows behind and receive the gift of everlasting life!." Pastor Briggs finished with, "aJesus is risen!"

The congregation chorused, "He is risen indeed!"

Sherlock could feel his own joy reflected in the faces of the other believers in the sanctuary. The story of the resurrection was truly a remarkable one.

After the sermon, Molly stood. Sherlock noticed she had put her shoes back on, after removing them as soon as they got in the pew. He stood and got out of the pew, to allow her to exit it and head to the front of the church, where she picked up a hand-held microphone, as she had done on Friday.

Molly began to sing. The piece was hauntingly lovely at the beginning, and gradually building as it went along. The piece was by an American singer named Sandi Patty, and the song's title was "Who will call Him King of Kings?" It began with the disciples laying Jesus in a tomb, then returning to find him not there. The "Who will call Him King of Kings?" sung by the angels, changed to be a "We will call Him King of Kings" by the disciples. The Final refrain changed to "I will call Him King of Kings," that brought the song to a personal level for each person listening. Sherlock could not help beaming as he listened to his wife hit the high G at the end, and sustain the note, allowing her vibrato to make it richer as the last note went on.

As the song concluded, there was a spontaneous burst of applause. People normally did not applaud after solos, but on this occasion the music and the words, sung so well by Molly gave everyone such a sense of the joy behind it, that it wasn't just applause for Molly, but applause for the resurrection in general. Sherlock joined in enthusiastically, clapping until the noise died away.

He stood up once again to let Molly back into the pew. He could see her legs were trembling. She had told him that sometimes that happened, when she felt the power of the Holy Spirit surging through her. His wife was a woman of many talents.

As they sat, Pastor Briggs quipped, "Well, that's rather a difficult act to follow," as the people in the congregation laughed. Sherlock gave Molly a quick peck on the cheek and squeezed her hand.

At the end of the service, one last hymn was sung, "He Lives." And then Pastor Briggs gave the usual benediction.

The atmosphere was so different from the solemnity of Good Friday service.

This time, people lingered to talk after the service. Several people came up to congratulate Molly on her singing, to which she modestly replied, "I give all the glory to God."

The first to come up was Sheila, and Jake was with her. The middle-aged couple had been together now for several months and Molly suddenly noticed an engagement ring on her friend's finger. "You're engaged!" she exclaimed.

"See, Molly," murmured the sleuth, "we definitely started a trend."

Sheila beamed happily and said, "Jake proposed after church on Friday night. By the way, the song was lovely. I know someone who went to church with Sandi Patty's father. I love her songs, and you did it justice, Molly."

Molly blushed. "Thanks Sheila. Her songs are so powerful aren't they? Congratulations to both of you on your engagement." She hugged Sheila as Sherlock shook Jake's hand.

"I hope you will both be as happy as Molly and I are," he smiled.

Then, Molly's friends Caleb and Abigail came up, with their 6 month old baby daughter, Grace. The couple had sung "The Prayer" at Sherlock and Molly's wedding almost eight months earlier. Abigail had been 7 months pregnant at the time, So was able to empathize with Molly on how difficult it was to exert diaphragmatic control with a baby making things more difficult.

"I can't believe you were able to hit that high G so well," she told Molly. "It was wonderful!"

"Thanks," responded the pathologist/singer. "I really love that song. So, how is Grace doing?"

"She's doing great," enthused Abigail, "Just cut her first tooth, so we had a few fussy days,but she is fine now. You look ready to pop. When is your daughter due?"

"One month from today," responded Molly. "I'll be very glad when she is here and I get rid of these swollen ankles," she mourned, displaying her poor feet.

Abigail nodded sympathetically. "I know how you feel, I had that problem, but only in the last two weeks. As soon as Grace was born, within 3 days, the swelling was completely gone."

Sherlock wandered off. Pregnancy woes, while he sympathized with them, were not really his thing. He didn't like to think of Molly being in discomfort. He spotted his best friend John a short distance away, with Kayla.

"John," he called, walking to the couple. Kayla was holding Rosie, and the one year old held out her arms towards the detective.

Sherlock took his goddaughter from Kayla. "Hi sweetheart," he said, kissing the little one's cheek. She was getting so big! Then he set her on his hip as he asked, "Well, my friend, what did you think of the service?"

"I'm thinking your wife could have been a professional singer, that's what I'm thinking," grinned John.

"I know, my wife is a woman of rare and varied talents, but what did you think about the service in general?"

"As you know, I was brought up in the Catholic church, but I only went as a child and didn't really understand it, or think much about it. I'm starting to think there's something to this Christianity thing. Kayla has definitely been working on me, much as Molly influenced you," his friend said, with a fond look in Kayla's direction.

"Glad to hear it, my friend." He had noticed John's views softening in the past few months. Kayla was a wonderful influence, and he felt perhaps he himself might have had something to do with it too. John, more than anyone else had seen the turn-around in Sherlock's life since Sherrinford and his subsequent conversion.

The detective noticed Molly walking towards them, and said, "Well, He is Risen!"

Kayla responded with an enthusiastic "He is risen indeed!."

Molly reached Sherlock's side and slipped her hand into his, before saying, "Hi Kayla, hi John!"

"My goodness, Molly," exclaimed Kayla, "You look ready to have the baby here and now. Do you think the baby will come early?"

Molly laughed. "Much as I'd like that, Sherlock has to finish painting the nursery first. We still have a few things to buy too."

"Don't forget, I have bags of baby clothes for you. Although Rosie was born in January, I'm sure you'll still find most of them useful. I must drive around and drop them off soon," remarked John.

"Thanks. That would be great," responded Molly. "Oh, excuse me, I just want to speak with George and Roxanne."

The older couple reached the group and George said, "You did a great job with that song, Molly! Glad I recommended it to you."

Sherlock knew that George and his wife were originally from America. They were a very nice couple who had traveled all over Europe, before settling in London after his early retirement three years earlier.

Molly explained, "George told me an opera singer from his old church sang this song on Easter Sunday several times over the years."

"That's right," affirmed the bearded man. "That opera singer and I even got to sing "The Prayer" together once, the one from when Sherlock and Molly were signing the register during their wedding," he explained to John and Kayla.

Sherlock beamed at his wife. "I'm very proud of Molly - but then, I always am."

"Well, in that case, give me a minute to hold our goddaughter, Sherlock," she responded, as George and Roxanne left to talk with some other people.

Sherlock handed over the little girl, who was, as usual, reaching up to tug on one of his curls. As he watched Molly bouncing the baby, not such a baby anymore though, he thought about how much he was looking forward to seeing her hold their own baby very soon.

Molly soon relinquished Rosie back to her father. "I guess we should head home. I need to get these shoes off."

Sherlock and Molly were home within thirty minutes. True to her word, Molly immediately took off her shoes and groaned.

Sherlock could see the creases the shoes had made on his wife's poor feet. "My poor darling," he said. "Rest your feet on my lap and I'll massage them."

"No, they smell," protested Molly.

The detective laughed. "Then I'll get soap on a flannel and wash them first."

Molly reached over to kiss him tenderly. "You are the best husband, Sherlock."

"That's no hardship, when I have the best wife," he responded.

"Oh, I need to use the loo before you wash my feet," his wife said and Sherlock grinned. He was quite amazed she had gone this long without dashing to the toilet. Yes, having a baby was a lot of work.

As his wife left the sitting room, he closed his eyes and prayed, **_Thank you Jesus, for the sacrifice you made for us, and for coming back from the dead to give us new life as believers. And thank you for my wife and baby._**

He opened his eyes as Molly headed back towards him, flannel in hand.

"I thought I'd save you the trouble of getting the flannel." She handed her husband the warm flannel before kissing him again. "I love you, Sherlock."

Once they were seated on the sofa, Sherlock washed his wife's feet, then massaged them. It was the least he could do for her. She was the one doing all the work in readying their baby for the world.

Once he had finished, he held her close and kissed her. "I love you, Molly."

Yes, he was truly a blessed man.

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 **Author's note:** A lot of this story contains elements of fact. The cross I described is what is in my own church. The opera singer George talks about is me (yeah, I had to put myself in the story ha ha).

You can find the Sandi Patty song on YouTube as well, and yes, I sang it this morning for our Easter service.

Talk about Molly's discomfort comes from experience. I experienced severe edema in my feet at the end of my first pregnancy. I also sang in the opera Turandot when I was 9 months pregnant (gave birth four days after the last show ended). Putting in my own experiences helps to make the characters more realistic and believable (at least I hope so).

I hope the story resonates with you and that you will consider leaving feedback on it.

May you have a blessed Easter.


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